New Ethanol Terminal Inaugurated in Columbia
In Washington state, Tidewater Transportation and Terminals inaugurated a $12.5 million ethanol unloading and storage site in Pasco to serve the Columbia and Snake River regions.
On Tuesday, August 27, more than 60 area notables, members of the business community, and terminal personnel gathered mid-afternoon for a ribbon cutting ceremony and celebration of the company’s state-of-the-art, onsite ethanol unloading and storage facility in Pasco.
The facility consists of a 24-hour ethanol unit train railcar unloading rack with 24 new unloading stations and associated rail spurs. In addition, two 65,000-barrel steel tanks were built in order to provide reliable operating storage when an ethanol unit train arrives. Each tank has a floating roof which results in a net working capacity of 54,000 barrels.
“Our goal was to provide an efficient and cost-effective barge delivery service to our downriver clients who are currently space-constrained to receive large amounts of ethanol, a blending requirement for their gasoline,” explains Bob Curcio, Tidewater President and Chief Executive Officer.
“Today marks a significant milestone for Tidewater and the culmination of a three-year project that we have worked in cooperation with our committed business partner, BNSF Railway. Thanks to top-notch engineering, construction, project management and considerable hard work by so many skilled individuals we are thrilled to celebrate the opening Tidewater’s Snake River Terminal Ethanol Transloading Facility.”
State Representatives from Washington’s 9th, 15th, and 16th Districts; Council Members of the City of Kennewick, Pasco, Benton, and West Richland; and Commissioners from the Port of Benton, Pasco, and Walla Walla joined in the celebration. Following the ribbon cutting, attendees were invited to take a guided tour of the facility.
Tidewater Transportation and Terminals is a portfolio company of Upper Bay Infrastructure Partners, a private North American infrastructure investment firm, managed on behalf of its co-investors.
Headquartered in Vancouver, Washington, Tidewater operates the largest barge transportation and terminal network on the Columbia-Snake River system.